government investigation has gone cold until a disturbing video clip appeared monday on the facebook page of supporters for syrian president bashar al assad. it had been posted on youtube six days ago. a warning, some viewers may find the following video upsetting. it shows austin theiss being led away. blindfolded and in broken arabic, he recites portions of a prayer, and then shows signs of distre distress. >> oh, jesus. >> reporter: the disturbing video was not released on any known extremist website. the state department can't verify whether the man in the video is austin theiss, but friends say the man featured is the 41-year-old former marine. some suggested that the video may be staged, pointing to the clothing that is native to afghanistan, not syria, and the forced recitation of a prayer. >> almost as if they watched tapings and video clips of men and fighters in afghanistan and tried to mimic their behavior, but did so in a very poor manor. >> reporter: before theiss vanished, he had been reporting on the escalating violence in syria. >> reporter: prepared for an anticipate